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Withering Reeds
withering reeds by Phoenix Flight if you're going to comment, please put effort?? into it. is that too much to ask. ''mistakes'' Reedpaw crouched on the branch, high above the ground. His pale eyes shone excitedly. He knew his mentor, a lean she-cat named Foxstride, often patrolled this way on days like this - cloudy, breezy, but not exactly cold or dreary. In fact, it was the perfect weather for cats in SpruceClan, and Reedpaw was taking advantage of this. His plan was to hide until Foxstride appeared and neared the river. He would then spring off the branch and plummet nearly three fox-lengths to the ground, crashing into the she-cat's flank. It was a move all cats of the Clan were taught, and, since Reedpaw had learned it rather recently, he wanted to show off to Foxstride how he had perfected the move. The tabby tucked his paws tighter under his chest, starting to feel rather impatient. Come on, come on... where is she? Maybe he'd been wrong. Maybe Foxstride wasn't coming, and she was still in camp relaxing with her friends. Maybe he'd climbed this entire tree for nothing. He waited for another ten minutes, but still nothing. The tom started shuffling back toward the trunk, defeated. But at last, as he glanced back at the ground, he spotted her. Foxstride bounded toward the riverside, in pursuit of a huge bird - a guinea, they were called, from one of the nearby Twoleg barns. The she-cat's jaws snapped at the bird's tail, ripping the grey feathers away. Then, with an extra burst of speed, Foxstride was on top of the guinea, clawing and biting at its neck. The bird soon grew weak, letting out clucks of pain and fright, then fell to the ground, dead. Foxstride flicked her tail triumphantly as she gazed at the dead bird. She retracted her claws, stepped back, and bowed her head to thank StarClan for the prey. Reedpaw finally saw his chance. He sprang and spread all four paws out, making sure to fall as silently as he could. Then Foxstride snapped her head up, her green eyes wide, and lurched forward to dodge. Reedpaw, thinking quickly, flashed out his hind paws and struck his mentor in the flank before hitting the ground with a gasp. All the air rushed out of him, and he started gulping for breath. His breath hitched when a high-pitched screech sounded from the river, and the apprentice quickly turned to see what had happened. The guinea's head was now dangling over the river. Confusion played over Reedpaw's face. The bird had just been nearly a tail-length away from the water, why was it so close now? He got an answer merely a heartbeat later. A russet head bobbed out of the water, shrieking for help. Cream-colored paws paddled furiously against the current, but despite the size of the paws, the cat was only tossed further downriver, screeching and calling for help. Reedpaw was frozen to the spot, watching in horror as Foxstride disappeared, then reappeared, gasping for breath. One last time, she went under. Then a limp body rose to the water's surface, only to be battered by the violent waters. It became a russet blob in the distance, and it was soon gone. "F-Foxstride...?" Reedpaw whispered, trembling violently. Then, louder, he screeched, "Foxstride!" He took an unsteady step forward, his tabby fur bristling. Then he turned and pelted into the trees. Tell them she tripped. Tell them it was a mistake. Tell them she was attacked. The thoughts overwhelmed Reedpaw. What would he say? That one of SpruceClan's strongest warriors had just died? Tell them she was murdered. His thoughts only strayed closer and closer to the truth. Tell them you killed her. Tell them the truth. Reedpaw stumbled into camp, gasping for breath. Cats rushed over to him, their eyes wide with surprise and confusion. Their questions filled his hearing, and the tabby apprentice shook his head. "F-Foxstride is..." he whispered shakily. "What's wrong with Foxstride?" someone yowled. "Foxstride is... dead!" Reedpaw wailed. The cats around him immediately went into a uproar, disbelief and anger in their voices. "She couldn't just die so suddenly!" "I'll find whoever killed her and flay them alive!" The deputy of the Clan, Kitefur, shoved her way through the crowd and screeched, "Silence!" When the Clan's yowls finally died down, the russet she-cat faced Reedpaw, her eyes narrowed. "Well, Reedpaw?" she demanded. "Who killed Foxstride?" Her voice was steady. Reedpaw trembled. After hearing the Clan's vows to avenge the dead warrior, he was now afraid to tell the truth. "It... it was..." Hearing the entrance to the camp rustling, he turned to see Brindlepaw slipping into camp with wide eyes. "It was Brindlepaw!" Reedpaw yowled. Brindlepaw froze, a confused look on her face. "Wh...?" She'd barely taken one step forward when accusations and insults flew at her. "Traitor! Mouse-heart!" "How dare you!" Guilt overwhelmed Reedpaw. He felt as if he had to defend Brindlepaw, to protest. But he had told them that the she-cat had killed Foxstride. He couldn't just act as if he'd remembered wrong. Reedpaw stood frozen to the spot and said nothing. ''blame'' Brindlepaw's eyes widened with distress. What had she done? Cats she'd thought of as friends were suddenly just yelling at her, insults that chipped away at her like claws against ice. "Everyone shut up!" Kitefur howled, her striped fur bristling. Instantly the Clan fell silent. "There is no way this young apprentice could have killed Foxstride! Foxstride was an experienced warrior with cleverness and strength on her side. She would not have fallen so easily to any cat, especially Brindlepaw." Her plume of a tail swept from side to side as she spoke. "Brindlepaw, where were you?" "I-I..." Brindlepaw's voice shook. "I was h-hunting along the border with CypressClan." "And Reedpaw," Kitefur growled, turning to face the grey cat, "where did you discover the body?" "She was... being w-washed down the river." Reedpaw mumbled. -more tba